Philippines

The Philippines signed its first bilateral FTA with Japan in 2006 and is presently party to the ASEAN FTA processes (China, India, Korea, Japan and Australia/New Zealand). The Philippine government has been trying to get Washington to offer an FTA, while those of New Zealand and Chile are apparently in favour of a bilateral deal with Manila. The Philippine government wants to join the TPP, and is engaged in efforts to lay the groundwork for negotiations with the EU for a possible FTA.

The United States has assured the Philippines it will not renegotiate sugar access with countries that have concluded free-trade agreements (FTAs) with the United States. Manila had feared that rival exporters would take advantage of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks to get a bigger slice of the world sugar market.

The Philippines is not ready to commit to negotiations but is still “very serious” about pursing a free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union, seen as a major export market and investment partner.

The Philippine private sector has failed to maximize the preferential terms in trade agreements with developed economies, thus, placing the country in a low position in global trade with respect to its Asian neighbors.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is visiting the Philippines on Tuesday to initiate the Obama administration’s Partnership for Growth (PFG) program for devising measures to facilitate trade and investments in conflict, poverty and graft stricken countries

Free-Trade agreements with South Korea and Taiwan.
This is what the State-owned think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) is urging the government to forge in order to help boost the local automotive industry.

The Bureau of Customs on Wednesday said its collections in the first six months were 8.6-percent below target due to a strong peso and partly as a result of slower imports following Japan’s twin disasters in March.

The Department of Trade and Industry has tapped the Philippine Institute for Development Studies to evaluate how the country has benefited so far from the various trade agreements entered into by the government, both bilateral and through the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Determined to get to the bottom on the use of fake Free Trade Agreement (FTA) certificates that has defrauded government of billions of pesos in taxes, the Bureau of Customs (BoC) has sought the help of its Chinese counterpart to expose the modus operandi.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) will be holding an information campaign on free trade agreements (FTA) among specific sectors to encourage exporters to maximize trade opportunities in these markets.

The signing of the framework deal with the European Union (EU), a prerequisite for a free trade agreement, has hit a snag given the United Kingdom’s questions as to whether some cooperation activities can be implemented.

The Philippines Department of Trade and Industry has started a series of consultations with the public and stakeholders on the possibility of a preferential trade agreement between the Philippines and the EU.

The Philippine government will spend the next three months conducting consultations with various stakeholders and doing impact assessment studies on different sectors in preparation for talks with the European Union within the year on a possible free-trade agreement.

With poor awareness among exporters of trade opportunities under the country’s various free trade agreements, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is intensifying its information awareness campaign focusing on the government’s priority exports.

The European Union wants a trade deal with the Philippines to go beyond tariffs and will seek as well commitments on services, government procurement and intellectual property (IP) protection, an official last week said.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry yesterday renewed calls for the government to start negotiating a free trade deal with the European Union, after noting that more Southeast Asian neighbors have begun talks with the Western bloc.

8-Mar-2018People over Profit

Peoples movements, especially women, are enraged that the revived and rebranded CPTPP (Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership), an agreement set to trample on people’s rights, will be signed today, March 8, the very same day that is historically dedicated to honor the struggle of working class women against injustice and capitalist exploitation, and for the advancement of their rights.

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